By Anthony Marcusa / Source: Ecorazzi

In a story both fascinating and disturbing, the state of California is going far back in time to supply water to its ever-drying landscape.

As wells continue to dry up and water levels drop, California is now tapping into reserves that were made not merely centuries or a few millennia ago, but during the last Ice Age. The state is now pumping water that fell some 15,000 – 20,000 years ago, when the world was a much different and colder place.

For comparison, the water now being sent around the state existed prior to the pyramids and has many years on the world’s oldest tree.

California has had to dig so deep, and go so far back into the geological era, because wells have run dry amid a changing climate that has led to an extended drought.

That the water exists should come to a surprise to many. Only recently was it discovered that such prehistoric reserves exists, and the findings have only been quietly reported.

What this means of course is that California is pulling out more than it’s bringing in, setting up disastrous circumstances in the future. During this drought, more than 50% of the state’s water comes from underground sources. Some towns and farming communities depend wholly on such reserves. The state is entering the fourth year of its drought, and now prices look to be increasing too, as three of the Bay Area’s largest water agencies are contemplating hikes by some 30%.

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